Broken
by AloverC
Summary: AU. This is a one-shot where you follow Percy as he attempts to comfort Annabeth through a well rehearsed routine. Just read, it won't take you long and you may relate.


**I do not own Percy Jackson.**

Annabeth had been excited through school that day. I only had second and eighth hour with her, but throughout both she had rambled about getting to see her family. Due to the recent disfunction that had been plaguing the Chase household, they were distant.

Typically I would be going with her to this family barbeque -I was family in all but paperwork to them, in my mind, wise girl and I were already married- today however, I had to work. There was a huge pile of dirt with my name on it.

Either way, her excitement was contagious and I found myself looking forwards to the final bell a surprising amount by the time eighth period finally rolled around.

When the bell DID ring, the only one to beat me out of my seat was Wise Girl herself, who was admittedly more excited than I.

One might think we were over reacting; however, had you known the situation, you would be just as excited at this display of civil coordination and communication of behalf of her family and my soon-to-be in laws.

We parted ways at our cars, me to work and her to go get ready for dinner. She was exited through getting dressed and the entire ride there with her parents, which she texted me during. Even though I was working, I didn't mind. It was nice to see her exited for something again. I couldnt remember the last time that was the case.

I didn't talk to her for several hours. When she got there, though I did tell her I was available if she needed anything.

When I got off work at eight i texted her just to say, "Hey, hope you're having fun. Just making sure everything is going alright. Haven't heard from you in a while."

I got a rushed text back that yes, everything was indeed fine and that she would text me when they left.

I got another text from her just before ten. It simply said, "Hey," and it kicked off about ten minutes of small talk. I had a bad feeling however, as I often do, and voiced my concerns saying, "Hey, is everything alright? I just have kinda a bad feeling you know?"

There was a very short pause before I got an answer, "I don't know."

I felt my breath hitch, and thought of an appropriate response to get her talking. I went with the simplest, "What's going on Love?"

There was a long break while she wrote out her answer. I couldn't help but notice the familiar knot in my stomach form as I waited for what I knew was coming.

She didn't disappoint. "My grandma's crazy. My families pretty much in pieces. I mean my mom and aunt made up but they're never here. My mom is falling apart. I can barely hold myself together. I'm falling back into old habits and thoughts and I'm kind of all over the map. The family in pieces thing is really hitting me hard right now."

While I'm very concerned for her family, it's the mention of old habits that scares me the most, as her physical well-being is always my first priority. And her emotional a close second.

I want to call and actually talk to her -what I really want is to hold her- but she is with her parents and so won't answer. So I typed out a response.

"Oh Annabeth no. Everything's going to be ok alright? Things always are going to be bad on one level or another. But it always works out ok? Just keep taking one step at a time and I'll always be here. Don't forget that part, it's important."

I pray that this is only a low level attack and that the sweet words alone will calm her down.

Her next text proves me wrong, "There's no way this is working out. My grandma is losing her mind it's not coming back. My moms being torn in half. Most of my family lives so far away that I never see them. Not to mention the fact I want to crawl out of my own skin lately." I cursed to myself, as there had been so much progress on her self image lately.

I try for a different approach and steer the conversation to her telling me she'll go to bed when she gets home. I know I won't be sleeping until late into the night. She needs to soon though, I have a working theory which labels Annabeth as safer whenever she is asleep. Because while all the horrible demons that torture her live in her head, the catalysts that set them off are in the tangible world. So if she is sleeping they don't go off.

I like to believe that anyway.

She gets home soon and gets into bed. I feel like she has something else to say though. So I prod, as I always do when I must. She replies with, "The only thing there is to say is I'm tired of being in my skin. There are so many beautiful girls at our school and they're all athletic and have great bodies and I'm chubby and I've gained so much weight and I have stretch marks all over my legs and I just wished I looked like I used to and I'm tired of looking like this."

I don't stop to think for even a moment before responding, "You look amazing Wise Girl. You always will. The only one who doesn't see that, is you Love. I promise though. You will. Don't know how, don't know when or where or how long it will last. But at some point, you'll see what I do."

I meant what I said.

Soon we had said our goodnights and she was hopefully asleep. I however was laying in bed, staring at the ceiling.

At three in the morning when it started to rain.

I loved the rain, and tonight was no different, it helped to calm me, lul me.

Suddenly however, I felt an unsettling feeling grip me and I grew concerned.

Annabeth.

I knew something was wrong, I knew it like you knew when somebody was watching you.

I moved quickly to my phone and called her.

She didn't pick up. Which was weird in itself, she always turns the volume on her phone all the way up, for instances just like this, when I need to hear her voice. Soft and gentle, occasionally broken by the rasps that come from falling asleep with tears in her eyes and hiccups in her , she was purposely not answering me.

I had to get to her. Now.

I grabbed my keys and ran to my truck, in no shirt and sweatpants, in the rain. I called her repeatedly the entire way there. She never picked up the phone.

I soon pulled into her drive and could see in her window. She was sitting with her head in her hands, though she was moving before I had even finished my turn.

She opened her bedside drawer.

"Annabeth!" I call but she doesn't respond. She pulls her hand into my view,

Annabeth!" I scream as I stop the car, not bothering to turn it off and begin to run to her window.

As she puts a gun to her forehead I'm close enough now to the window that I can see the tears mark face as she locks eyes with me, and the tendons in her hand tightening as she squeezes the-

"ANNABETH!"

I am suddenly sitting in the pitch darkness of my room as thunder cracks and rattles the window panes. I look around frantically for a moment, disoriented, and when I figure it out I leap to my phone. I have one missed message, from Annabeth. It reads, "Hey, got thirsty and woke up for some water. I'm feeling a little better and going back to sleep now. See you tomorrow."

I drop the phone to the floor and I can feel every muscle and tendon in my body loosen as I relax. And tightening again as I cry.

Because of my older age it's not the sad whimpers of a child with a snotty nose. As I cry it is in the gut wrenching baritone of a grown man and the shameless hiccups in it only make it sadder to hear. I continue to cry and sweat until my body can't take it anymore and I fade into a restless slumber. An hour later my alarm wakes me. The alarm I always set for an hour before Annabeth is supposed to get up, so that I'm here when she first has to face the catalyst of the world.


End file.
